The dog days of summer aren’t here yet, but they are near. If you live in the American South, you’ve been dealing with soaring temperatures for awhile now. Hot temperatures can be hard on the elderly, small children, but also on your pet. Today, I am going to share tips for keeping your furry friends safe in searing summer heat.
1. Outfit your outdoor pet with a fan and some shade.
Make sure your outdoor pet has some sort of shade. Sun sails work great and are easily installed. Shade trees have many benefits, aside from providing shades. They provide oxygen and add beauty to your yard.
2. Have plenty of water available
One of the best ideas I’ve seen is to get your pup a kiddie pool. You can even bury it to make it an “inground” pool. Think of it as a water bowl big enough to swim in. You can drink it, or cool off in it.
3. Proper hair and grooming
If your dog has a long coat,keeping him or her trimmed and groomed up will make a huge difference in the heat. A short haired dog? Keep him combed and brushed to help eliminate extra hair.
4. Get your pup a snowball
Did you know Pelicans Snowball sells a “pup cup?” Pup cups are just shaved ice in a bowl with chicken broth poured over it. It doesn’t sound too tasty to me, but doggies love it.
What are some of your favorite ways to keep your pets cool during the dog days of summer?
As a busy mother of two with a full time job and a part-time business on the side, I know a thing or two about how difficult it is to cook. I also know that when you’re not prepared, it’s a lot easier to justify running to the drive through, where you end up spending money and making choices that aren’t the healthiest.
Once during the school year, we went over our monthly bank statement to discover we’d spent $400 that month on eating out. We were shocked…and vowed to do better. We are now doing an experiment in our house- we write on the calendar each time we eat out, and write down each time we cook at home. This is helping us keep track of how much we are spending, but also on how often we are eating at home.
I’d also like to share some other things you can do to ensure that meal times run more smoothly in your home.
1. Keep staple ingredients in your pantry at all times.
Who else here has started following a recipe, only to find that you were missing one or two ingredients you needed? Isn’t it frustrating? Think about your family’s favorite things to eat at home, and isolate the ingredients that are common in those recipes. Then, make sure you keep a stockpile of those ingredients in your pantry and fridge.
2. Plan ahead as often as possible
Planning ahead means that you already have a good idea of what you are going to cook for that week. I have tried to plan two weeks of meals at a time, but sometimes life happens and we don’t stick to it entirely. I’ve now started planning for one week at a time, and planning based on what I have in the pantry, fridge and freezer that week. This way, I am taking our weekly activities into account as well. Gymnastics on Tuesdays? Use the crock pot so it isn’t as time consuming and there is little clean up. Church on Wednesday night?How about salads for dinner? You get the idea.
3. Clean as you go
Do you ever find that there is a giant mess in your kitchen after you cook, and you often do not get to it until hours later? I have had to wake up early before to clean the kitchen from the night before. One way that I handle this are to fill the sink with soapy water and wash/rinse utensils as I’m cooking. I can also soak bowls and pans before popping them into the dishwasher. The second thing I do is to reuse a bowl from meal prepping to put food scraps or trash in. Having a trash bowl saves me trips to the compost bin or trash can. I use a dish that I’ve already used so I’m cutting down on dirty dishes. It doesn’t sound like a huge deal, but it really helps.
I’ve reached a point in my life where I’ve realized I need to spend a little more money at the grocery store to get pre-chopped vegetables once in awhile. I initially felt silly about this, but then I realized it truly does save me a lot of time and prep work in the kitchen.
What have you done to simplify your cooking at home? Please comment below and share your tips with me 🙂
Pool noodles are ridiculously cheap, and you can find them almost anywhere. And while most of us use them to float in a pool, there are many other ways you can use them as well. In today’s Pinterest roundup, I’d like to share some creative ideas for repurposing pool noodles.
You can use them to make a cheap wreath form for a lot cheaper than a foam wreath form.
Getting organized can be costly, but it doesn’t have to be. You certainly can spend a lot of money on organization if you want, but if you’re budget conscious like me, you don’t want to do that. Luckily, there are many ways to get organized without overspending.
1. Shop discount home stores like TJ Maxx or Home Goods, or use sales coupons.
I love the basket selections at my local big box craft store, but I don’t love the price. TJ Maxx and Homegoods have tons of cute baskets in a number of colors and materials, and they aren’t expensive.
2. Don’t forget the dollar stores
Dollar store bins and baskets aren’t the most durable, so they aren’t appropriate for organizing everything. They’ll do for organizing cabinets, holding bathroom toiletries and organizing your kids’ books,though.
3. Target has awesome baskets, and they’re frequently on sale
I have bought so many cute, durable baskets at Target over the years. They have so many different sizes and styles to choose from.
4. See if you can repurpose or DIY something
I have covered diaper boxes with fabric and used them for bins. I’ve wrapped old mailing boxes with twine so they’d look like a basket. I’ve used tin cans wrapped in scrapbook paper to store things. Before you buy, Look around to see what you already have that can be repurposed.
5. Shop your house
See that basket on my china hutch? It’s been everywhere. It’s been in my bathroom, my kitchen, my office, and now it landed in the dining room. Shop your house to see if you may already have something you can use before you buy anything new.
There are so many ways you can get organized by spending little to no money. All it takes is a little creativity. You’ll be glad you did it later.
